La Conversa, the platform for disseminating research in Catalan
Starting today, The Conversation, an international platform in scientific dissemination, now has a Catalan-language edition: La Conversa. Led by the Vives Network of Universities, this initiative, which has the full support of the University of Barcelona, will promote the dissemination of research in Catalan within a global ecosystem with high social impact.
Starting today, The Conversation, an international platform in scientific dissemination, now has a Catalan-language edition: La Conversa. Led by the Vives Network of Universities, this initiative, which has the full support of the University of Barcelona, will promote the dissemination of research in Catalan within a global ecosystem with high social impact.
The Conversation is a non-profit journalism project, founded in Australia, which publishes articles written by researchers and edited by specialist journalists. It aims to bring academic knowledge to the public through clear, accessible texts based on scientific data. All content is published under a Creative Commons licence, which allows it to be republished free of charge in media outlets around the world, significantly amplifying its reach.
The UB and the promotion of scientific dissemination
The UB, committed to promoting scientific culture and transferring knowledge to society, became one of the founding institutions of the Spanish version of The Conversation in 2018. Almost eight years later, the UB is one of the most active universities in Spain thanks to the active participation of its research community, both in terms of the number of articles (503) and the number of reads (more than nine million).
In 2023, The Conversation launched its European edition, The Conversation Europe, which also has the support of the UB, enabling articles written by its research and teaching staff to be translated into English and reach a broader audience.
Now, with La Conversa, UB researchers will be able to disseminate their research and share knowledge in their area of scientific expertise in Catalan, thereby consolidating the Catalan language within a prestigious global network that attracts thousands of readers every month from around the world.
The advantages of participating in La Conversa
For the UB research community, publishing in La Conversa will be an opportunity for visibility and recognition. Contributions are signed, linked to the institutions of origin and integrated into a widely recognized international platform, which reinforces the value of the articles as merits in knowledge transfer and social impact, increasingly relevant in the evaluation of academic careers.
La Conversa will publish weekly original articles in Catalan written by researchers from universities in Catalan-speaking territories, as well as selected translations of articles from other international editions of The Conversation. This combination allows us to offer a local perspective with a global outlook and, at the same time, to project Catalan-language thinking to an international audience, as the content can be circulated and disseminated in other editions of the platform.
The first articles signed by the UB community
La Conversa was launched with four articles written by members of the UB research community:
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Noemí Montetes-Mairal and Joan Santanach, professors at the Faculty of Philology and Communication, discuss how universities have inspired great literary works in “Construir un món literari des dels corredors de la Universitat”.
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Estrella Montolío, a professor at the same centre, advocates the importance of learning to converse.
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David Bueno, professor at the Faculty of Biology, analyses one of the hottest debates of recent days, the ban on the use of social media by minors under the age of 16, in “Xarxes socials i adolescents: prohibir no és prou”.
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Finally, Jordi Abante and Caterina Fuses, from the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, explain why some people with Huntington’s disease become ill earlier than others.
How to write in La Conversa?
Any member of the research and teaching staff at the University of Barcelona (including PhD students) may publish in La Conversa, provided that the article — which is intended for general dissemination — is of interest and is accepted by the platform’s editorial team.
Articles must be related to the author’s area of expertise and must be based on their research or specific, evidence-based knowledge. Articles addressing current issues are valued, but articles on discoveries or research may also be proposed.
This link provides information on how to submit a proposal to La Conversa. The UB’s Institutional Communication unit offers support to UB research and teaching staff in this task and acts as a liaison with the platform.